WATCH: Video of the Prairies' first tornado of 2015
Digital Reporter
Friday, June 5, 2015, 6:16 PM - Storms on Thursday evening produced the Prairies' first confirmed tornado of 2015.
Environment Canada says a brief twister touched down around 5 km from Airdrie, Alta., at around 5 p.m. local time.
A dust cloud is clearly visible in the video above, but the weather agency says no damage was reported. The tornado has been given a preliminary rating of EF-0 on the enhanced Fujita scale. EF-0 tornadoes have estimated winds in the 90-130 km/h range.
"This was considered a landspout tornado that was generated by weak rotation under rapidly growing clouds or weak thunderstorms," Environment Canada says. "Landspout tornadoes do not usually cause significant damage, but can still be dangerous, as they can topple trees, damage roofs or toss debris a short distance."
This is the second tornado to be confirmed in Canada in 2015. Environment Canada confirmed a tornado touched down near London, Ont., on May 30. The agency gave it a rating of EF-1, with winds gusting up to 177 km/h.
On Friday, severe thunderstorm watches and warnings were issued for parts of the Prairies, with a heightened chance of funnel clouds.
Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story said that tornadoes in Canada with an EF-0 rating have estimated wind speeds of 105-137 km/h. This is the EF-0 wind speed estimate used by U.S. meteorologists. Environment Canada uses a lower EF-0 windspeed estimate range. This version has been corrected to give the Environment Canada range.
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